Morten Schantz Unicorn

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Unicorn is the latest effort from the Danish pianist and composer Morten Schantz who is adding another adventurous chapter to an already impressive career.

The album consists of nine songs, eight of which are original compositions written during a seven months residency in Northern Italy. The luscious landscapes of the Veneto region was the perfect setting for Schantz to dive into his newest vision: To invent a sound blending the sound of his critically acclaimed jazz trio with Middle Eastern tonalities and West African grooves.

In late 2012 he recorded the new material with bass-player Morten Ankarfeldt, drummer Janus Templeton, and Ghanaian percussion wizard, Ayi Solomon.

A few months later, recordings were completed on various locations in Morocco, adding local musicians on traditional Arabic instruments such as the oud, rebab and gimbri. To give the album an extra dimension, the voice of Moroccan/Algerian singer Lyna Ben El Mouaz was recorded as well as a choir consisting of art students in Rabat. The sound of street noise and people chatting captured from deep inside the medinas of metropolises Rabat and Marrakech gives the album a distinct ambience.

The album title, Unicorn, is a symbol of magic, miracles, purity, innocence and enchantment – all keywords that Schantz connects to the album:

“The Unicorn only exists in fairy tales and has the ability to bestow magic, miracles, and wisdom upon anyone who is lucky enough to encounter the creature. The way I see it, the Unicorn is our music and there’s a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, if you step into our world with open ears. The musical direction we take on this album is, at least for me, pointing towards uncharted land, and we strive to give the listener the sensation of voyaging, mystery, and love with danger lurking at any given moment. A colourful voyage.”

Since the 2011 release of the trio’s debut album, “Conveyance”, Morten Schantz and his trio has been busy touring in places such as the US, Brazil, Russia, Denmark, and Lithuania.

Schantz is also well known for his contribution as a leading force behind the critically acclaimed super group JazzKamikaze.